Amelia made a face at her cousin. "No, I'm betrothed to Bertram, remember? Or I was. That's why I'm here, to find out if I am or not. That and you and Mark are all the family I have left. I wanted to see you one last time at least and let you know I survived."
Judy made a face now and then looked at Bertram.
"Tell her, Bertram. I thought that was why you went for a walk."
Bertram stammered, unable to look Amelia in the eyes.
"It's been four years. Thinking you were dead and all." Judy remarked coldly, not giving her cousin a look at all.
"Yes, I know it's been four years." Amelia watched them both squirm.
"Well, first we had you declared legally dead. How could we know?" Judy insisted. "Bertram held out such hope for so long. In that time, I was with him, trying to make him feel better. Trying to keep his sanity. We consoled each other."
"I'm sure you did." Amelia answered trying her best not to grit her teeth.
"That's right." Judy looked straight at her with contempt. Amelia expected a cool reception from Judy, but somehow it hurt that her only flesh and blood would not care. "We consoled each other for quite a while. Then one day, we realized we loved each other and we married. It's that simple."
Amelia sat stone still. Cale reached for her hand, and she took it. "I guess it is. All this time I was worried about coming home, and facing you. Only to find you two squirming about not wanting to admit the truth. Well, go on, tell the rest of it. Have you squandered my inheritance too?"
"Don't be ridiculous!" Judy yelled. "Your parents were dead, you were missing. Missing for four years. How could we have known?"
"Enough, Judy." Bertram stood up and paced the room. "Yes, we used your money to pay for this house. And to finance my business holdings. It's not as sordid as it sounds, Amelia. As far as the courts were concerned you were dead. The judge agreed it was the right thing to do. You'd been gone three years when we decided to have you declared dead."
Amelia's heart fell in her chest. She hadn't thought she had loved Bertram truly, this proved it. But to come home to no money. No way to make things right for herself, hurt.
"You used all of it?" She asked.
"All of it." Bertram answered. "Please, I kept hope for three years, Amelia. But there was not one word from you. Not one word from anyone about you. I put up circulars, I paid men to search for you. I was going mad. Judy saved me from that. Can't you try to understand?"
"And what of Mark. What did he get from all of this? Where is he?"
Judy hung her head in shame this time. The blunt way Amelia asked had her guilt bothering her obviously.
Amelia's mouth shot open in shock this time. Now that she knew the money was gone it shocked her even more to learn that her male cousin got no money at all. "Nothing. You gave him nothing?"
Judy's temper flared at her insinuation. "Don't look at me like that. He didn't want it! He steadfastly refused. I offered, but he swore we were doing some very wrong. He wouldn't have any part of it."
"But you didn't think you were doing anything wrong, until now…am I right?"
"It wasn't wrong, Amelia. As far as anyone was concerned, you were dead. Mark just couldn't accept it. He even went out looking for you again, after three years. He naturally came back with nothing, but he still refused to believe you dead."
Amelia stopped. After all these years of not knowing why she didn't feel something for these people, now she felt for poor Mark. They had cheated even him out of the money. And she had sorely misjudged her male cousin.
Cale came up to Amelia.
"Well, I've heard about all I want to hear. How about you?"
Amelia nodded. But as she was ready to leave she turned around to look at them, "Where's Mark?"
Judy made a face, turning away to look at Bertram, then over her shoulder at Amelia. "Drowning his sorrows as usual at the local saloon on Fifth Street I would imagine. We'd love you to stay; we'd love to know how you managed to survive in captivity. I'm sure it's quite a story."
Amelia turned around as she headed for the door, she heard the rich sarcasm in Judy's voice and couldn't believe it. "I really don't think you'd be interested Judy. Good luck to the both of you. Be happy."
"Where are you going?" Bertram asked as though he had every right to know.
"Far away from here, Bertram." She answered and shot him a scathing glance.
"What about the money?" Judy asked.
"The way I see it, there is no money." Amelia moved toward the door. "You've already said so."
"You mean you are going to walk away from the whole thing?" Bertram asked flabbergasted.
"What did you expect me to do, sue?"
She saw his face drop and she shook her head. "You honestly think I'd do such a thing? My God, you never knew me at all, did you?"
When he didn't answer, she added. "I came here to find out about our engagement for one thing. Well, I can honestly say, that's over. I'm glad I came, if only for that. It closes the door and opens new ones. As far as the money goes, I no longer cared. I lived four years without a cent to my name, I can do it again!"
"Please don't be bitter Amelia." Bertram said quietly as she opened the door.
"The way I see it, you should be totally happy. Both of you. You have each other and you have my money. If I were the kind of person you think I am, I could shoot you both and not be held accountable, because I'm not legally alive. Be happy Bertram, if you can. Judy, I'm glad you finally got what you wanted. Goodbye!"
"Wish I could say it was nice meeting you, but I honestly can't. Good day!" Cale smiled at them both.
"She'd never hurt me!" Bertram bragged. "She loves me; why else would she come back."
Cale's eyes narrowed on the man that was at least five inches taller, and Cale came closer. "The reason she came back, the only reason she came back was because I insisted."
"I can't lose any more, can I?" Amelia's voice faltered with emotions unspoken. "And Cale is right, I only came back because Cale insisted I should see for myself. Well, I've seen." She walked out of the house. "I think deep down somewhere in my heart, I knew this would be the case. I know Judy, and now I really know you too Bertram. All I can say is, you deserve each other."
"Let's go see Mark!" She whispered to Cale.
Cale took her to the carriage and whipped the horses in a run.
Chapter Nineteen
Cale kept glancing at Amelia to see how she was holding up, but she seemed more mad than upset.
The Old Trail Saloon was a musty mix of beer, a long oak bar, a lot of smoke and a little music every now and then by a fiddler. That's where they found Mark. They'd already looked in seven other saloons near the area.
Amelia looked at almost every man there before she stumbled onto a man slumped over the bar, heavily engaged in his own sorrows. He had a bottle in his hand and drunk as anyone Amelia had ever seen. All the emotions seemed to release now into one long sigh.
"Mark?" She questioned as she walked up to him almost hesitantly.
"Who wants to know," He mumbled not bothering to raise his head or look her way.
His clothes were rumpled, his hair mussed, and he reeked of whiskey.
Cale walked up to him, raised Mark's head and turned it toward Amelia, "This lady wants to talk to you."
Mark stared at her for long moment. Obviously, he was trying to focus and having a hard time of it. Then he blinked and looked away. "Now I'm seeing ghosts?"
"No, your not. She's real, friend." Cale said.
Mark turned to look at Cale. "Who are you?"
"Cale Matthews is my name. Are you Mark Harrison?"
"Yeah…at least I used to be. But who are you?"
"I brought your cousin back from the Indians. She wanted to see you again."
"Amelia!" Mark reached a finger to touch her and jumped backwards. "My God, she's real!"
"I just came from seeing Bertram and Judy. They told me where to find you."
"They thought yo
u were dead!" Mark mumbled then broke out in a harsh laugh. "I argued with them right up until the time they declared you dead. I knew you'd survive somehow. You were strong…I knew that. But what you must have gone through…I can't quite believe it…you survived!"
He reached a helpless hand to her cheek and patted her there. "Oh…oh my God…your alive!" He cried and stood up and hugged her to him.
It was no ordinary hug either. He held her tight for several long moments. "I'm so glad you are alive…My God, it's a miracle. That's what it is. A miracle!"
"Yes I survived. And thank you…you are the first person who seems glad to see me." Amelia looked him in the eye.
"Oh God…I am so happy for you!" He was near tears.
She pulled out of his arms and looked into his bloodshot eyes. "Thank you…from the bottom of my heart. I am alive. A little shocked to find out I've been declared dead, my fiancé married to my cousin and my money spent on their luxuries. But I'm alive."
Mark made a face, and shook his head.
"They went and spent all your money, because they thought you were dead and it was alright." Mark explained. "They wanted me to take some of the money, but I just couldn't do that. It wasn't right. You lost your parents, and were captured by those savages. We went on with our lives. I couldn't take the money. It was blood money. Let them rot with it!"
"They said you wouldn't take the money." Amelia smiled at him. "Thank you, Mark. I've misjudged you all along. I thought Judy controlled you."
"She did, for a long time. But when I realized what they aimed to do. I couldn't. It was blood money. And you were right, she used to control me. But that day we went to court to have you declared dead, something changed in me. I knew why they wanted you dead. I saw her for what she was a gold digging bitch. She hated you, you know that don't you?"
"Can we sit at a table and talk?" Amelia looked at him.
"Sure…want a beer?" He asked her.
"No, a sarsaparilla maybe." She smiled again at him.
"How about you?" Mark looked at Cale.
"I'll have a beer with you, Mark." Cale smiled.
"I like you. Who is he, again?" Mark looked at Amelia for answers.
"Cale Matthews, he brought me back here. I came back…because I had to know if I fit in any longer. And because Cale thought I should find out about the three of you."
"I guess you got your answer pretty fast. Unless you become a cold bitch too, you don't fit in, Amelia. I watched them change, right before my eyes. I watched them look at your dead parents and I saw a sparkle in Judy's eyes that I couldn't understand. I couldn't believe she could look at those poor souls, dead, like she did. Bertram, he's been led astray, but I cannot absolve him from the greed that began to grow between the two of them. I want no part of them. So every day I come here, and drown them out of my mind. At least I try to."
"Mark, this is no place for you. You used to be so good with your hands. You could build anything, without much effort, but you never used that talent, did you?"
"Build? Yeah, I guess that did come easy for me."
"You deserve better than this, Mark."
"Do I? I've been a weakling most of my life. Taking orders from my older sister. But no more, I'd rather be a drunken bum than be around her or Bertram. I hope the shock of seeing you, scared them witless."
"It had an effect alright!" Cale smiled.
"Mark, I've been gone four years. I learned a lot in those four years. I don't know when it happened but I fell out of love with Bertram about the second year I was captured. He didn't make much of an effort to find me, did he?"
Mark hung his head again, and an emotion came over him as tears came to his eyes. "We went out once, when it first happened, but it had rained and washed all the tracks away. We turned back because he was frustrated and hated getting wet and there were other reasons we turned back that day. Big mistake. I knew it then, I know it now."
Amelia smiled sadly at Mark.
"I remember you carved a fiddle out of a piece of oak once. It was so beautiful." Amelia couldn't believe that memory came back to her so easily now.
"I gave that fiddle to you, because you thought it was so beautiful. And it burned in the wagon when they took you."
"Mark, how did you and the others get away?"
Mark put the bottle on the table and stared at it a minute. He shook his head with a sardonic smile. "When they grabbed you, we scattered into the brush and hid. They hadn't seen us for some reason, of course they were too busy murdering your folks. We were so scared, we stayed hid for hours after they left, afraid they might come back. We walked to the nearest town and the people there helped us, gave us food, and shelter. I saw them taking you, Amelia. I saw you kick and scream and I saw them strip you of your clothes, and rope you and pull you away, like an animal. I was too scared to move. Too scared to help. The shame of that day is still with me today. I should have done something. I should have tried."
Amelia reached a hand to his and held it. "Don't be ashamed. Had I been able to run away, I would have. And I wouldn't have saved you or Judy. Bertram was the oldest and he ran too, I guess."
"Bertram is a rat. I'm sorry about Bertram. He disappointed me too. I thought he'd go after you that very day. But what he said…"
"What did he say, Mark?" Amelia prodded.
"He said once those savages got you, you wouldn't be any good to anyone. But maybe you are better off without him. He's such a money hungry bastard."
Amelia glanced at Cale and he turned his head in question.
Amelia looked at Mark, and realized just how much he'd changed. Even as a drunk, she still felt an odd affection for him. He'd grown a mustache, and his hair was thick and dark brown. He had aged some too. He was thin and not very tall, but he still had the most charming smile she had ever seen on a man.
Strangely, Mark was the only one she felt anything for. There was something so little boyish about him, even now.
"What are you doing here, Mark?" Amelia asked.
"You'd ask me that and you…being with Indians for four years. The truth is I couldn't stand to watch my sister and Bertram any longer. He's changed a lot. She's still the same old jealous woman she always was. She got Bertram you know. Married him. Had you declared dead. I wouldn't have any part of it. I knew you'd survive somehow. I just didn't know how to find you. I tried once by myself, but I just kept getting so lost. I really did. You see, when Bertram and I went out that day, we saw the Comanche out on the prairie from a distance, but I could tell Bertram was scared. I told him that if anyone had you, it was them. He looked at me real hard, then turned his horse for town and rode off. Then he came back here and had those fliers put out with your picture on them, to ease his guilt. We might have saved you then, if we'd have made some effort. Again, I let someone else tell me what to do. I've been doing that too long. So now, I drink every day and I don't go near the two of them. Judy, she's the one that wanted you declared dead. She kept harping about it. Said the money was going to waste. For nothing. I argued with her every day. I lost. But…I'm a drunk you know…? What I say doesn't matter. They let me know that if I wasn't man enough to claim what was rightfully mine, then I didn't deserve not having anything. I agreed and walked out. Haven't been back since. Let them live in their big house, and wallow in the money that was never rightfully theirs. I don't care. At least my conscious is clear."
"You don't have to be a drunk any longer..."
"No, well, what am I going to be?" He asked her lifting his head and eyeing her.
Cale spoke up and both Amelia and Mark's head jerked about to stare at him. "A farmer if you want to."
"A….farmer?" Mark repeated.
"I got a farm up north, I could keep you busy. We'd put a roof over your head and food in your belly, and you wouldn't have to do nothing but work a full day every day. What do you say to that?"
"You'd do that for me? You're a stranger you don't even know me. Why would you do something like that for me?"
Cale nodded. "You are Amelia's cousin, and you didn't take the money. I admire that. Because I can see, you could use it. And I'd like to help you."
"I carve wood for money. See that man over in the corner? I made him a fiddle, now he can earn his money too. He cried the day I gave it to him. Cried, a grown man like that. It was the first thing I've ever done in my life that made me proud. Now, I don't make much, but don't need much." Mark eyed him closely now. "So why would you want to help a drunken bum like me?"
"Because you didn't take the blood money." Cale smiled. "And because you need help, like that man over there with the fiddle you made."
"Well I'll be damned!" Mark nearly slid out of the chair, but he balanced himself and stared at Cale. "Where did you find him?"
"He found me," Amelia smiled.
"I like him." Mark smiled. "God, I thought all the good men were gone…"
"Let's go get a juicy steak and talk about it, friend." Cale suggested.
Cale took one arm, Amelia took the other and they carried him out into the sun light. He rubbed his eyes and looked at them both. "You two aren't ghosts are you?"
"No, we're real, Mark." Cale told him.
"Good, 'cause I don't believe in ghosts anyway." Mark looked at Amelia. "My God…you're alive!"
He touched her face with his hand. "You're really alive…"
Amelia laughed. "Yes, I am…"
Chapter Twenty
"I gotta tell you. I have never farmed in my life." Mark admitted as he began to sober and finished his steak.
Cale considered his honesty and smiled. "I've got a barn that needs repairs and a house that needs adding on to. And I'll warn you now; I have an Indian living with me, and his wife."
"Well now, you probably do need to expand the size of your house then. I can help with that!" Mark's eyes grew bigger. "Like Amelia said, I'm good with my hands. And I'm sure what I can't do, I can learn."
"Good." Cale nodded at him.
Mark glanced at Amelia. "I can't believe I'm sitting here talking to you after all this time."
Heart of a Captive Page 16
